Method and device for surface treatment of substrates

ABSTRACT

A method for surface treatment of an at least primarily crystalline substrate surface of a substrate such that by amorphization of the substrate surface, an amorphous layer is formed at the substrate surface with a thickness d&gt;0 nm of the amorphous layer. This invention also relates to a corresponding device for surface treatment of substrates.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.16/581,851, filed Sep. 25, 2019, which is a continuation of U.S.application Ser. No. 16/108,719, filed Aug. 22, 2018, which is acontinuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 15/315,900, filed Dec. 2, 2016(now U.S. Pat. No. 10,083,854, issued Sep. 25, 2018), which is a U.S.National Stage Application of International Application No.PCT/EP2014/063303, filed Jun. 24, 2014, said patent applications herebyfully incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a method for surface treatment of a substratesurface as well as a corresponding device for surface treatment of asubstrate surface.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In the semiconductor industry, different bonding technologies havealready been used for several years in order to connect substrates toone another. The connecting process is called bonding. A roughdistinction is made between the temporary bonding method and thepermanent bonding method.

In the temporary bonding method, a product substrate is bonded to acarrier substrate in such a way that after processing, it can bedetached again. Using the temporary bonding method, it is possible tostabilize a product substrate mechanically. The mechanical stabilizationensures that the product substrate can be handled without curving,deforming, or breaking. Stabilizations by carrier substrates areprimarily necessary during and after a back-thinning process. Aback-thinning process makes it possible to reduce the product substratethickness to a few micrometers.

In the permanent bonding method, two substrates are bonded to oneanother continuously, i.e., permanently. The permanent bonding of twosubstrates also makes it possible to produce multi-layer structures.These multi-layer structures can be comprised of the same or differentmaterials. Different permanent bonding methods exist.

The permanent bonding method of the anodic bonding is used in order toconnect ion-containing substrates permanently to one another. In mostcases, one of the two substrates is a glass substrate. The secondsubstrate is preferably a silicon substrate. In the method, an electricfield is applied along the two substrates that are to be bonded to oneanother. The electric field is produced between two electrodes, whichpreferably bring the two surfaces of the substrates into contact. Theelectric field produces an ion transport in the glass substrate andforms a space charge zone between the two substrates. The space chargezone produces a strong attraction of the surfaces of the two substrates,which ensure contact with one another after the approach and thus form apermanent connection. The bonding method is thus based primarily on themaximization of the contact surface of the two surfaces.

Another permanent bonding method is the eutectic bonding. Duringeutectic bonding, an alloy is produced with a eutectic concentration oris set during the bonding. By exceeding the eutectic temperature, thetemperature at which the liquid phase is in equilibrium with the solidphases of the eutectic, the eutectic melts completely. The liquid phaseof the eutectic concentration that is produced wets the surface of theareas that are still not liquefied. During the solidification process,the liquid phase solidifies to form the eutectic and forms theconnecting layer between the two substrates.

Another permanent bonding method is the fusion bonding. In the case offusion bonding, two flat, pure substrate surfaces are bonded to oneanother by making contact. In this case, the bonding process is dividedinto two steps. In a first step, the two substrates are brought intocontact. In this case, the attachment of the two substrates is carriedout primarily by van der Waals forces. The attachment is referred to asa prebond. These forces make it possible to produce an attachment, whichis strong enough to bond the substrates tightly to one another in such away that a mutual shifting, in particular by the application of ashearing force, is possible only with a considerable expenditure ofenergy. In contrast, the two substrates, in particular by applyingnormal force, can be relatively easily separated from one another again.The normal forces in this case preferably engage on the edge in order toproduce a wedging action in the boundary surface of the two substrates,which produces a continuous crack and thus separates the two substratesfrom one another again. In order to produce a permanent fusion bond, thesubstrate stacks are subjected to a heat treatment. The heat treatmentresults in forming covalent connections between the surfaces of the twosubstrates. Such a permanent bond that is produced is only possible bythe use of a correspondingly high force that in most cases accompanies adestruction of the substrates.

The publication U.S. Pat. No. 5,441,776 describes a method for bonding afirst electrode to a hydrogenated, amorphous silicon layer. Thisamorphous silicon layer is deposited by deposition processes on thesurface of a substrate.

The publication U.S. Pat. No. 7,462,552B2 shows a method in which achemical gas phase deposition (Chemical Vapor Deposition, CVD) is usedin order to deposit an amorphous silicon layer at the surface of asubstrate. The amorphous layer has a thickness of between 0.5 and 10 m.

In their publication U.S. Pat. No. 7,550,366B2, Suga et al. report on anaccidentally produced amorphous layer, which is approximately 100 nmthick. This amorphous layer is located between the two substratesurfaces, which were prepared by a surface-activation process. Theamorphous layer is a by-product of the ion bombardment of the substratesurface with inert gas atoms and metal atoms. The actual bonding processthus takes place between iron atoms, which cover the amorphous layer.

The heat treatment represents another technical problem. The bondedsubstrates have very often already been provided with functional units,such as, for example, microchips, MEMs, sensors, and LEDs, which have atemperature sensitivity. In particular, microchips have a relativelystrong doping. At elevated temperatures, the doping elements have anelevated diffusivity, which can result in an undesirable,disadvantageous distribution of the dopings in the substrate. Inaddition, heat treatments are always associated with elevatedtemperatures and thus also with higher costs, with the production ofthermal voltages, and with extended process times for heating andcooling. In addition, bonding is to be done at the lowest possibletemperatures in order to prevent shifting of different substrate areas,which are comprised of different materials and thus in general also ofdifferent thermal expansion coefficients.

A plasma treatment for purification and activation of a substratesurface would be an option for bonding at relatively low temperatures.Such plasma methods do not work or work only very poorly, however, inthe case of oxygen-affine surfaces, in particular in the case of metalsurfaces. The oxygen-affine metals oxidize and in general formrelatively stable oxides. The oxides are in turn an obstacle for thebonding process. Such metals can also be bonded to one another withrelative difficulty by diffusion bonding. The bonding ofplasma-activated, in particular monocrystalline, silicon, which forms asilicon dioxide layer, works very well, however. The silicon dioxidelayer is extremely well suited for bonding. The above-mentioned negativeeffects of the oxides therefore do not necessarily relate to all classesof materials.

The literature contains several approaches that describe direct bondingat lower temperatures. One approach in PCT/EP2013/064239 includes inapplying a sacrificial layer, which is dissolved in substrate materialduring and/or after the bonding process. Another approach inPCT/EP2011/064874 describes the production of a permanent connection byphase conversions. The above-mentioned publications relate in particularto metal surfaces, which are more likely bonded via a metal bond and notvia covalent bonds. In PCT/EP2014/056545, an optimized direct bondingprocess of silicon by a surface purification is described.

The surface roughness of the surfaces/contact surfaces to be bondedrepresents another problem. In particular, when removing oxides andcontaminants from the surfaces of the substrates that are to be bondedwith one another with known methods, frequently a higher level ofroughness is produced. On the microscopic scale, this roughness preventsfull contact between the two surfaces during the bonding process, whichhas an adverse effect on the effective bonding strength. The twosubstrate surfaces bond almost overwhelmingly on tangent surface maximumpoints. Therefore, in particular, a contrast exists between goodpurification and provision of a surface that is as ideal as possible.

In the semiconductor industry, in particular substances or materials ofthe same type are to be connected to one another. The type similarityensures that the same physical and chemical properties are presentacross the connecting point. This is in particular important forconnections, across which electrical current is to be conducted, whichare to have a low tendency toward corrosion and/or the same mechanicalproperties. Among these substances of the same type, primarily thefollowing are found:

Copper-copper

Aluminum-aluminum

Tungsten-tungsten

Silicon-silicon

Silicon oxide-silicon oxide

Some of the metals used in the semiconductor industry are oxygen-affine.Thus, under an oxygen-containing atmosphere, aluminum forms a relativelysolid aluminum oxide. During bonding, such oxides have a negative effecton the bonding result, since they are trapped between the two materialsthat are to be bonded to one another. Under extreme conditions, such anoxide can completely prevent a bonding process; under the most optimalconditions, the oxide is trapped. A mechanical breaking of the oxidelayer before the incorporation is also conceivable. The oxide isthermodynamically stable enough not to decompose or to go into solidsolution. It remains as oxide in the bonding boundary surface and has anegative effect on the mechanical properties there. Similar problemsarise for tungsten and/or copper bonds.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is therefore the object of this invention to indicate a method and adevice with which an optimal connection is achieved at the lowestpossible temperature, in particular with the greatest possible purity atthe bonding boundary surface.

This object is achieved with the features of the independent claims(s).Advantageous further developments of the invention are indicated in thesubclaims. Also, all combinations that include at least two of thefeatures indicated in the specification, the claims and/or the figuresfall within the scope of the invention. In the indicated ranges ofvalues, values as boundary values that lie within the above-mentionedlimits are also to be considered as disclosed and can be claimed in anycombination.

The basic idea of this invention is to produce an in particularprimarily amorphized layer with a defined thickness d at a substratesurface that is to be bonded. In this case, the amorphized layer can beapplied to the substrate in particular by chemical and/or physicaldeposition processes, preferably sputtering, or can be produced directlyfrom the substrate. A main aspect of the invention is in the fact,however, that the amorphized layer is not made by a material applied bymeans of physical and/or chemical processes but rather results from aphase conversion of the substrate material. As a result, the depositionof material that is in particular accidental or harmful can becompletely eliminated. Hereinafter, therefore, primarily the secondmethod is presented in detail.

The invention relates in particular to a method for permanent bonding oftwo substrates, of which at least one, preferably two, was/were treatedbefore the bonding as described below. Surface areas, in particular acontact side (preferably over the entire surface) of the two substratesor of at least one of the two substrates, are amorphized before thebonding process. Hereinafter in the patent specification, the entiresubstrate surface is described as an amorphized surface area, althoughaccording to the invention, the amorphization of surface areas, inparticular separate from one another, which are smaller than thesubstrate surface, is conceivable. By the amorphization, ananometer-thick layer is produced, in which the atoms of at least one ofthe surfaces to be bonded (contact sides) are arranged randomly. Thisrandom arrangement results in a better bonding result, in particular inthe case of comparatively low temperatures. To produce a bond accordingto the invention, in particular a purification of the surfaces (at leastthe contact sides), in particular for releasing oxides, is performed.Purification and amorphization preferably occur simultaneously, evenmore preferably by the same treatment. A significant aspect of theinvention according to the invention is in particular the use oflow-energy particles, in particular ions, whose energy is comparativelylow but is sufficient to produce the amorphization described accordingto the invention.

The removal of oxide from the substrate surfaces is advantageous for anoptimal bonding process and a substrate stack with correspondinglyhigher bonding strength. This applies in particular for all materials inwhich an oxygen-containing atmosphere forms an accidental native oxide.This does not necessarily apply for deliberately produced oxygensubstrate surfaces such as, for example, for silicon oxide. Inparticular, oxides according to the invention—preferably at leastpredominantly, even more preferably exclusively, harmful, unnecessaryand/or native, in particular metal oxides—are removed. Preferably, theabove-mentioned oxides are removed to a very large extent, in particularcompletely, before a bonding process in order not to be incorporatedinto the bonding boundary surface (contact surface of two substrates).An incorporation of such oxides would lead to a mechanicaldestabilization and to a very low bonding strength. The removal of theoxide is carried out by physical or chemical methods. In an especiallypreferred embodiment according to the invention, the removal of theunwanted oxides is carried out with the same unit by which the methodaccording to the invention is implemented. As a result, the followingcan be simultaneously performed, in particular under optimalcircumstances:

Oxide removal

Surface smoothing

Amorphization

In alternative embodiments according to the invention, the oxide removalis not carried out in the same unit.

In this case, it must be ensured in particular that no renewed oxidationof the substrate surfaces occurs during transfer of the substratesbetween the two units.

In other words, the idea according to the invention includes inparticular in the increase in bonding strength between two substratesurfaces by amorphization. In this case, the amorphization solvesseveral problems:

In the first place, the amorphization according to the inventionpreferably precedes a purification of the substrate surface. Inparticular, purification of the substrate surface and amorphization areperformed simultaneously, even more preferably by the same process.

In the second place, the amorphization according to the inventionproduces a planarization of the substrate surface. In this case, theplanarization takes place during the amorphization, in particular inaddition by the action of a force that acts during the bonding process.

In the third place, a thermodynamically metastable state at thesubstrate surface (bonding boundary surface) is produced by theamorphization. In another process step (in particular after the surfacesto be bonded make contact), a (back) conversion of partial areas of theamorphous layer into a crystalline state results in this metastablestate. In the ideal case, a complete conversion of the amorphous layeris carried out. The resulting layer thickness after making contact andthe subsequent heat treatment of the amorphous layer are in particulargreater than zero.

One idea according to the invention is primarily the production of theamorphous layer that is comprised of the existing basic material of thesubstrate, in particular by particle bombardment. Preferably, before thebonding of the substrates, no material is applied to the substratesurfaces to be bonded.

The method according to the invention makes possible the production of acomplete and/or full-surface, in particular mixed, contact of twosubstrate surfaces, of which at least one, preferably two, is/areamorphized according to the invention. Contaminants, inclusions, voidsand bubbles are completely avoided by the complete contact.

The method according to the invention is used in particular for theproduction of a contact that is complete and/or full-surface and/orunmixed of two, preferably different, substrate surfaces. In particular,the following materials can be bonded to one another in any combination.

Metals, in particular

-   -   Cu, Ag, Au, Al, Fe, Ni, Co, Pt, W, Cr, Pb, Ti, Te, Sn, Zn

Alloys

Semiconductors (with corresponding doping), in particular

-   -   Element semiconductors, in particular        -   Si, Ge, Se, Te, B, α-Sn        -   Compound semiconductors, in particular            -   GaAs, GaN, InP, In_(x)Ga_(1-x)N, InSb, InAs, GaSb, AlN,                InN, GaP, BeTe, ZnO, CuInGaSe₂, ZnS, ZnSe, ZnTe, CdS,                CdSe, CdTe, Hg_((1-x))Cd_((x))Te, BeSe, HgS,                Al_(x)Ga_(1-x) As, GaS, GaSe, GaTe, InS, InSe, InTe,                CuInSe₂, CuInS₂, CuInGaS₂, SiC, SiGe

Organic semiconductors, in particular

-   -   Flavanthrone, perinone, Alq3, perinone, tetracene, quinacridone,        pentacene, phthalocyanines, polythiophenes, PTCDA, MePTCDI,        acridone, indanthrone

The following material combinations according to the invention arepreferably used:

-   -   GaN—Cu,    -   GaAs—SiO2,    -   Cu—Al.

Although the embodiment according to the invention is suitable primarilyfor connecting two substrate surfaces that are made of differentmaterials, hereinafter in the patent, reference is made primarily to theconnection of two substrate surfaces of the same type for the sake ofsimplicity. In other words, the invention relates in particular to amethod for direct bonding. In this case, the invention is preferablybased on the idea of amorphizing at least one surface (arranged inparticular on the contact side) of a substrate before the bondingprocess. The amorphization is preferably carried out not by thedeposition of a material that is amorphously resublimated respectivelycondensed under the given deposition parameters at the substrate surfacebut rather in particular by an alteration, primary forming and/or phaseconversion of an amorphous layer at the substrate surface. This is donein particular by the introduction of kinetic energy by particlebombardment, in particular ion bombardment, most preferably by alow-energy ion bombardment.

Amorphization

The amorphization is defined as the random arrangement of atoms incontrast to the well-defined arrangement of atoms in a crystal. Theatoms can be the atoms of a one-atomic single-component system, amulti-atomic single-component system, a one-atomic multi-componentsystem or a multi-atomic multi-component system. Component is defined asan independently variable material component of a phase. The amorphousphase has in particular no short-range order and/or no long-range order.An at least partially amorphous structure of the amorphous layer that isdesigned according to the invention is defined as a phase batch, whichincludes at least one amorphous phase and a crystalline phase. Referenceis to be made to the volume ratio between the amorphous phase and thetotal volume as the degree of amorphization. According to the invention,the degree of amorphization is in particular greater than 10%,preferably greater than 25%, even more preferably greater than 50%, mostpreferably greater than 75%, and all the more preferably greater than99%.

The amorphization according to the invention is limited in particular tothe area that is near the surface of the substrates that are to bebonded to one another, preferably by selection of the process parameterstemperature, pressure, ionization energy and/or ion current densityduring the amorphization. In particular, the material of the substrate,in this case apart from the amorphized layer according to the invention,remains at least primarily, preferably completely, crystalline.

In a first embodiment according to the invention, only the substratesurface of a first substrate is amorphized. The thickness d of theamorphous layer immediately after the production according to theinvention in a substrate surface is in particular less than 100 nm,preferably less than 50 nm, more preferably less than 10 nm, mostpreferably less than 5 nm, and all the more preferably less than 2 nm.

In accordance with a further development according to the invention, thesubstrate surface of a first substrate and the substrate surface of asecond substrate are amorphized. In a special embodiment according tothe invention, the amorphization of two substrate surfaces in the sameunit is carried out in particular simultaneously in order to produce thesame amorphous layers with the same process parameters. The amorphouslayers that are produced preferably have the same thickness d₁ of thefirst amorphous layer of the first substrate and d₂ of the secondamorphous layer of the second substrate. The ratio of the thicknessesd₁/d₂ of the two amorphous layers, in particular producedsimultaneously, is 0.6<d₁/d₂<1.4, preferably 0.7<d₁/d₂<1.3, even morepreferably 0.8<d₁/d₂<1.2, most preferably 0.9<d₁/d₂<1.1, and all themore preferably 0.99<d₁/d₂<1.01.

The substrate surfaces have a slight, but in particular notinsignificant, roughness before, during and after the amorphization. Ina preferred embodiment, the roughness of the substrate surface duringthe amorphization is reduced and has a minimum after the amorphization.The roughness is indicated either as a mean roughness, quadraticroughness or as an averaged depth of roughness. The determined valuesfor the mean roughness, the quadratic roughness, and the averaged depthof roughness are different in general for the same measurement sectionor measurement surface, but lie in the same order of magnitude range. Ameasurement of the surface roughness is done with one of the measuringdevices (known to one skilled in the art), in particular with aprofilometer and/or an atomic force microscope (AFM). In this case, themeasuring surface is in particular 200 m×200 m. Therefore, the followingnumerical value ranges for the roughness are defined either as valuesfor the mean roughness, the quadratic roughness or for the averageddepth of roughness. According to the invention, the roughness of thesubstrate surface before the amorphization is in particular less than 10nm, preferably less than 8 nm, even more preferably less than 6 nm, mostpreferably less than 4 nm, and all the more preferably less than 1 nm.The roughness of the substrate surface after the amorphization is inparticular less than 10 nm, preferably less than 8 nm, even morepreferably less than 6 nm, most preferably less than 4 nm, and all themore preferably less than 1 nm.

The amorphization is preferably carried out by particle collision withthe substrate surface. The particles are either charged particles oruncharged particles. The acceleration is preferably carried out withcharged particles (ions) since charged particles can technically beaccelerated more easily.

According to the invention, the ions are preferably also used in thepurification of the substrate surface. According to the invention,therefore, in particular a purification of the substrate surface, inparticular an oxide removal, is combined with the amorphization. If thesubstrates have been purified, in particular immediately before theamorphization, the method according to the invention can, however, alsobe used exclusively for the production of the amorphous layer. The ratiobetween the entire surface F of the substrate and the purified surface fis referred to as a degree of purity r. Before the bonding processaccording to the invention, the degree of purity is in particular to begreater than 0, preferably greater than 0.001, even more preferablygreater than 0.01, most preferably greater than 0.1, and all the morepreferably 1.

r=f/F

The purification and/or the amorphization preferably take place in avacuum chamber as a process chamber. In this case, the vacuum chambercan be evacuated to be less than 1 bar, preferably less than 1 mbar,even more preferably less than 10-3 mbar, most preferably less than 10-5mbar, and all the more preferably less than 10-8 mbar. In particularbefore the ions are used for amorphization, the vacuum chamber isevacuated preferably to a pre-established pressure, and is even morepreferably completely evacuated. In particular, the proportion of oxygenin the process chamber is greatly reduced so that a renewed oxidation ofthe substrate surfaces is not possible.

According to the invention, in particular the following gases and/or gasmixtures are ionized for the amorphization:

Atomic gases, in particular

-   -   Ar, He, Ne, Kr,

Molecular gases, in particular

-   -   H₂, N₂, CO, CO₂,

Gas mixtures, in particular

-   -   Forming gas FG (argon+hydrogen) and/or    -   Forming gas RRG (hydrogen+argon) and/or    -   Forming gas NFG (argon+nitrogen) and/or    -   Hydrogen

The gas mixtures used have in particular the following composition

TABLE 1 The table shows a listing of three exemplary gas mixtures: FGx,RFGx, and NFGx with their respective proportions of argon and hydrogen,or argon and nitrogen. Gas Mixture Gas Mixture Gas Mixture FG Ar (%) H(%) RFG H (%) Ar (%) NFG Ar (%) N2 (%) FG 0 100 Atmosphere RFG 0 100Atmosphere NFG 0 100 Atmosphere (10 sccm) (10 sccm) (10 sccm) FG 1 96 4RFG 1 100 0 NFG 1 95 5 FG 2 90 10 RFG 2 95 5 NFG 2 90 10 FG 3 80 20 RFG3 90 10 NFG 3 80 20 FG 4 70 30 RFG 4 70 30 NFG 4 70 30 FG 5 50 50 RFG 550 50 NFG 5 50 50

The ions are produced in an ionization process. The ionization processpreferably takes place in an ion chamber. The ions that are producedleave the ion chamber and are preferably accelerated by an electricfield and/or a magnetic field. Also, a deflection of the ions byelectric and/or magnetic fields is conceivable. The ions strike thesubstrate surface in an ion beam. The ion beam is distinguished by amean ion density.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the angle of incidencebetween the substrate surface and the ion beam can be freely selectedand set. The angle of incidence is defined as the angle between thesubstrate surface and the ion beam. The angle of incidence lies inparticular between 0° and 90°, preferably between 25° and 90°, even morepreferably between 50° and 90°, most preferably between 750 and 90°, andall the more preferably at exactly 90°. The impact energy of the ions onthe substrate surface can be controlled by the angle of incidence of theion beam.

The amorphization can be controlled by the impact energy. In addition,the removal of contaminants, in particular oxides, can be controlled bythe angle of incidence (and the associated impact energy of the ions onthe substrate surface). In addition, the exact selection of the angle ofincidence makes possible the control of the removal rate and thus thesurface roughness. The angle of incidence is therefore selected inparticular so that amorphization, removal of contaminants, in particularoxides, and surface smoothing are maximized for the desired result.Maximization is defined in particular as a complete removal ofcontaminants, in particular oxides, a still further, in particularcomplete, smoothing of the surface (i.e., a reduction of the roughnessvalue to zero), as well as an optimal, in particular thick, amorphizedlayer.

The control of the amorphization is implemented according to anotherembodiment of the invention by setting the kinetic energy of theaccelerated particles, in particular ions. The kinetic energy of theparticles is set in particular to be between 1 eV and 1,000 keV,preferably between 1 eV and 100 keV, even more preferably between 1 eVand 10 keV, most preferably between 1 eV and 1 keV, and all the morepreferably between 1 eV and 200 eV.

The current density (the number of particles, in particular ions, perunit of time and area) is selected in particular to be between 0.1mA/cm² and 1,000 mA/cm², preferably between 1.0 mA/cm² and 500 mA/cm²,even more preferably between 50 mA/cm² and 100 mA/cm², most preferablybetween 70 mA/cm² and 80 mA/cm², and all the more preferably 75 mA/cm².

The treatment time is selected in particular to be between 1 s and 200s, preferably between 10 s and 200 s, even more preferably between 50 sand 200 s, and most preferably between 100 s and 200 s.

Bonding

The bonding is done in particular in a separate bonding chamber, wherebythe bonding chamber, preferably in a cluster unit, is connectedintegrally to the process chamber for amorphization, even morepreferably with a steadily maintained evacuation, and can be moved fromthe process chamber into the bonding chamber.

After the amorphization according to the invention of at least one ofthe two substrate surfaces, in particular an alignment of the twosubstrates to one another is implemented. The alignment is preferablyimplemented by alignment units (aligners) and based on alignment marks.

After the two substrates are aligned with respect to one another, inparticular contact is made. The contact is preferably begun in thecenter and is continued radially outward until the contact is complete.With this type of contact, a displacement of gases is ensured. Inaddition, the two substrates are bonded to one another with as littledistortion as possible.

The contact preferably produces a prefixing, in particular a prebonding.The prebonding is distinguished by a binding strength of between 0.01J/m² and 2.5 J/m², preferably between 0.1 J/m² and 2 J/m², even morepreferably between 0.5 J/m² and 1.5 J/m², and most preferably between0.8 J/m² and 1.2 J/m². The prebonding does not necessarily lead to acomplete contact of the two substrate surfaces.

In another step according to the invention, the actual bonding processof the pre-bonded substrates is carried out. The actual bonding processis comprised in particular of the action of a force and/or temperature.The bonding temperature according to the invention is in particular lessthan 200° C., preferably less than 150° C., even more preferably lessthan 100° C., most preferably less than 100° C., and all the morepreferably less than 50° C. The bonding force according to the inventionis in particular greater than 0.01 kN, preferably greater than 0.1 kN,even more preferably greater than 1 kN, most preferably greater than 10kN, and all the more preferably greater than 100 kN. The correspondingpressure areas are produced by standardizing the bonding force accordingto the invention on the surface of the substrates. The substrates canhave any shape. In particular, the substrates are round and arecharacterized across the diameter according to the industry standard.The substrates can have any shape but are preferably circular. Forsubstrates, in particular the so-called wafers, the industry-standarddiameters are 1 inch, 2 inches, 3 inches, 4 inches, 5 inches, 6 inches,8 inches, 12 inches and 18 inches. In principle, however, the embodimentaccording to the invention can handle any substrate, independently ofits diameter.

According to the invention, pressure loading causes the substratesurfaces to approach each other in the boundary layer (formed along thecontact surface of the substrate surfaces) at which no contact is yetmade by the prebonding. The approach of the substrate surfaces resultsin a continuous reduction in size and an ultimate closure of cavities.According to the invention, in this case, the amorphization plays adecisive role, since a surface-isotropic electrostatic attraction iscreated by the amorphous state. Since the amorphous layers of thesubstrate surfaces that make contact with one another are both notcrystalline, it is not necessary to take into account a suitable contactthat continues onto the crystal lattice. The contact of two substratesurfaces with amorphous layers thus results in producing a new, larger,amorphous layer. The transition is configured in a flowing manner and ischaracterized according to the invention primarily by the completedisappearance of a boundary layer.

The thickness of the entire bonded amorphous layer, in particularimmediately after the bonding process according to the invention, is inparticular less than 100 nm, preferably less than 50 nm, even morepreferably less than 10 nm, most preferably less than 5 nm, and all themore preferably less than 2 nm.

The bonding strength is influenced in particular by three decisiveparameters, namely

The thickness of the amorphous layer,

The roughness,

The number of incorporated ions that have a negative effect, and

The bonding force.

According to the invention, the bonding strength in particular increaseswith increasing thickness of the amorphous layer. The thicker theamorphous layer, the larger the number of randomly arranged atoms. Therandomly arranged atoms are not subject to any long-range and/orshort-range parameters, and the cavities are correspondingly easilyfilled by the above-mentioned processes, in particular diffusion andapproach by pressure loading, since they do not have to be adapted to aregulated lattice. The contact surface and thus the bonding strength areincreased by the filling. The increase of the contact surface isidentified as a decisive parameter for the bonding strength. If the meanthickness of the amorphous layer is less than the mean roughness, notenough atoms of the amorphous phase are available to close the cavities.In contrast, it must be mentioned that a substrate surface with a veryslight roughness also has correspondingly small cavities. That is tosay, the slighter the roughness of a substrate surface, the smaller thethickness of the amorphous layer can also be in order to obtain adesired bonding result. A correspondingly thick amorphous layer isachieved according to the invention by a correspondingly high ionizationenergy, which results in the fact that the ions can penetrate as deeplyas possible into the substrate.

The effects of the roughness are defined analogously. The greater theroughness, the more difficult the approach of the substrate surfaces isand the more energy the atoms of the amorphous substrate surfaces mustexpend in order to fill the cavities and thus to maximize the contactsurface.

The bonding strength is also a function of the purity of the amorphouslayer. Any stored atom or ion can lead in particular to destabilization,in particular reduction of the bonding strength. The ions that are usedfor amorphization can therefore also have a negative influence on thebonding strength, in particular if they remain in the amorphous layerafter the amorphization. Therefore, in addition to a correspondingly lowionization energy, a lowest possible current density and treatment timeare also desired.

If the current intensity is multiplied by the treatment time, the ionsthat strike the substrate surface within the treatment time per unitsurface section are obtained. In order to minimize this number, thecurrent density and/or the treatment time can be reduced. The fewer ionsper unit surface strike the substrate surface, the fewer ions areincorporated in the amorphous layer. Primarily the particles that cannotenter into any bond with the material to be amorphized have negativeeffects on the bonding strength and are present only as defects, inparticular point defects. These primarily include the noble gases, butalso molecular gases.

In particular, according to the invention, the use of gases or gasmixtures, whose ions are responsible for a reinforcement of the bondinginterface, in particular by forming new phases, is conceivable. Apreferred option would be the use of ionized nitrogen, which nitratesthe amorphous layer.

Analogous considerations apply for all other types of elements that forma compound, in particular a metal, covalent or ionic bond with thematerial of the amorphous layer. In order to be able to reduce thecurrent density, in particular substrate surfaces that already have aminimal roughness are preferred. The smoother the substrate surface, thefewer and less energetic ions are required according to the inventionfor the reduction of roughness. As a result, a reduction of theionization energy and/or the ion stream and thus the number of ions perunit surface is made possible, which in turn leads to a lower number ofincorporated ions and consequently to fewer defects and ultimately to anincreased bonding strength.

Bonding strength is a function of bonding force, since a higher bondingforce leads to a greater approach of the substrate surfaces and thus toa better contact surface. The higher the bonding force, the more easilythe substrate surfaces approach one another, and the cavities are thusclosed by locally deformed areas.

Heat Treatment

A heat treatment, which is separate in particular from the amorphizationprocess, is carried out in particular either during and/or after thebonding in the bonder or after the bonding in an external heat treatmentmodule (in particular integrated into the cluster). The heat treatmentmodule can be a hot plate, a heating tower, a furnace, in particular acontinuous furnace or any other type of heat-generating device.

The heat treatment takes place in particular at temperatures of lessthan 500° C., preferably less than 400° C., even more preferably lessthan 300° C., most preferably less than 200° C., and all the morepreferably less than 100° C.

The time period of the heat treatment is selected in particular in sucha way that after the heat treatment, the thickness of the amorphousresidual layer according to the invention is less than 50 nm, preferablyless than 25 nm, even more preferably less than 15 nm, most preferablyless than 10 nm, and all the more preferably less than 5 nm. Theresidual layer thickness never completely disappears, in particular inmost cases studied, since complete conversion of the amorphous layer ispossible only with a complete adaptation of the converted crystallattice of the two substrate surfaces. Since a complete adaptation israther unlikely for reasons of energy and geometry, a residual layerthickness that is different from zero remains in most cases that aredescribed according to the invention.

In particular, during and/or after bonding and/or in the case of heattreatment, a phase conversion from the amorphous state into thecrystalline state is implemented.

In a quite preferred embodiment according to the invention, theabove-mentioned process parameters are selected in such a way that acomplete conversion of the amorphous layer into the crystalline phase iscarried out.

According to the invention, the purity of the converted materialaccording to an advantageous embodiment is selected in percent by mass(m %) in particular to be greater than 95 m %, preferably greater than99 m %, even more preferably greater than 99.9 m %, most preferablygreater than 99.99 m %, and all the more preferably greater than 99.999m %. Because of the high purity of the substrate material, an evenbetter bonding result is achieved.

Additional advantages, features, and details of the invention followfrom the description below of embodiments that are preferred and basedon the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1a diagrammatic cross-sectional depiction, not to scale, of anembodiment of a substrate, treated according to the invention, in afirst process step (amorphization) of an embodiment of a methodaccording to the invention,

FIG. 2 a diagrammatic cross-sectional depiction, not to scale, of asecond process step (making contact/prebonding) of an embodiment of amethod according to the invention,

FIG. 3 a diagrammatic cross-sectional depiction, not to scale, of athird process step (bonding),

FIG. 4 a diagrammatic cross-sectional depiction, not to scale, of afourth process step (heat treatment), and

FIG. 5 a diagrammatic cross-sectional depiction, not to scale, of aunit/device for producing an amorphous layer.

In the figures, features that are the same or that have the same effectare identified with the same reference numbers.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 shows a diagrammatic cross-sectional depiction, not to scale, ofa first substrate 1 with an amorphous layer 2 that is produced accordingto the invention at a substrate surface 1 o. The amorphous layer 2 ingeneral also has a rough surface 2 o. The roughness is preferablyreduced to a minimum during the removal of an oxide or other products.The amorphous layer 2 extends from the substrate surface 1 o over adepth (thickness d) into the substrate 1.

FIG. 2 shows a diagrammatic cross-sectional depiction, not to scale, ofa prebonding of two substrates 1, 1′ that are treated according toFIG. 1. The prebonding process is distinguished by substrate surfaces 1o, 1 o′ (contact surfaces) being brought into contact along surfaces 2o, 2 o′ of the amorphous layers 2, 2′. The contact is made in this casein particular at maximum points 2 e of the surfaces 2 o, 2 o′. Becauseof a roughness that is different from zero but in particular evengreatly reduced by the amorphization according to FIG. 1, the result inthis case is a formation of cavities 3. In quite especially preferredcases, as many maximum points 2 e as possible partially, in particularcompletely, extend into the minimum points 2 m in order to minimize thenumber of cavities 3 produced or their volumes as early as during theprebonding process.

Bringing the surfaces 2 o, 2 o′ into contact is completed by a bondingprocess according to the invention, in particular by force loadingcrosswise to the substrate surfaces 1 o, 1 o′ on the reverse sides 1 r,1 r′ of the substrates 1, 1′, and the (totaled) thicknesses d of thecommon amorphous layer 2″ formed from the amorphous layers 2, 2′ arereduced to a (common) layer thickness d′. At this time, a distinctioncan preferably no longer be made between the bonded surfaces 1 o, 1 o′of the substrates 1, 1′ that are bonded to one another. This property isalso mentioned as a specific feature of the embodiment according to theinvention and is used for differentiation from other technologies.According to modern technical knowledge, it is not possible to producean amorphous layer within a substrate without an alteration of the(crystalline) structure in the transfer path of the ions. By studyingthe structure before or after the amorphous (residual) layer, adefinitive identification of the process according to the invention isconceivable. If the structures before or after the amorphous residuallayer have not been definitively altered by ion bombardment, theproduction of the buried amorphous layer must be done by the bondingprocess according to the invention.

The force loading results in particular in an approach of the atomspresent in the amorphous phase and arranged at the surfaces 1 o, 1 o′.Because of the comparatively already small dimensions (in particularreduced by the amorphization) of the cavities 3, a deformation of themaximum points 2 e by a pure shifting of the atoms, in particularsupported by diffusion processes, is enough to virtually completelyclose the cavities 3. Plasticization of the structure is therefore notcarried out by plasticization processes known from plasticity theory,such as dislocation mobility or twinning, but rather at least primarily,and preferably exclusively, by movement of the individual atoms causedor supported by approach and/or shifting and/or diffusion.

In another process step of the invention according to FIG. 4, conversionof the amorphous layer 2″, produced in particular at least primarily byrecrystallization, is carried out. The conversion, in particularrecrystallization, leads to a continuous reduction of the layerthickness d′ up to a final layer thickness d″ according to theinvention, which according to a quite preferred embodiment according tothe invention is equal to 0 (zero). The ratio between d″/d and/or d″/d′is less than or equal to 1, preferably less than 0.5, even morepreferably less than 0.25, most preferably less than 0.1, and all themore preferably equal to 0. From this is produced in particular acomplete, almost defect-free crystalline transition between the twosubstrates 1, 1′. This can come about even during and/or shortly afterthe bonding, in particular even in the bonding chamber. In this case,the heating device of a bonder is used during bonding for heating thesubstrate stack (heat treatment).

FIG. 5 shows an ion source 4, which accelerates the ions of an ion beam5 at an angle of incidence a to the substrate surface 1 o, on thesubstrate surface 2 o.

LIST OF REFERENCE SYMBOLS

-   1, 1′ Substrates-   1 o, 1 o′ Substrate surfaces-   1 r, 1 r′ Reverse sides-   2, 2′, 2″ Amorphous layers-   2 o, 2 o′ Surface-   2 e Maximum points-   2 m Minimum points-   3 Cavities-   4 Ion source-   Ion beam-   d, d′, d″ Thicknesses-   α Angle of incidence

Having described the invention, the following is claimed:
 1. A methodfor surface treatment of an at least primarily crystalline substratesurface of a substrate, the method comprising: applying an amorphizedlayer via sputtering to the substrate surface for bonding at thesubstrate surface of the substrate, the amorphous layer having athickness d>0 nm.
 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein theamorphized layer is applied up to a thickness d<100 nm.
 3. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the applying is performed such that a meanroughness of the substrate surface decreases.
 4. The method according toclaim 3, wherein the mean roughness of the substrate surface decreasesto a mean roughness of less than 10 nm.
 5. The method according to claim1, wherein the sputtering comprises colliding particles with thesubstrate surface.
 6. The method according to claim 5, furthercomprising: ionizing a gas and/or a gas mixture to form said particles.7. The method according to claim 5, wherein said particles areaccelerated.
 8. The method according to claim 5, wherein kinetic energyof the particles is between 1 eV and 1,000 keV.
 9. The method accordingto claim 5, wherein a current density of the particles is between 0.1mA/cm² and 1,000 mA/cm².
 10. The method according to claim 1, whereinthe sputtering is performed in a process chamber, which is evacuatedbefore the sputtering.
 11. The method according to claim 10, wherein theprocess chamber is evacuated before the sputtering to a pressure of lessthan 1 bar.
 12. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:removing oxides from the substrate surface during the sputtering,wherein the removing of the oxides comprises purifying the substratesurface.
 13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the purifying andthe sputtering is produced by collision of particles with the substratesurface.
 14. The method according to claim 13, further comprising:ionizing a gas and/or a gas mixture to form said particles.
 15. Themethod according to claim 13, wherein said particles are accelerated.16. The method according to claim 13, wherein kinetic energy of theparticles is between 1 eV and 1,000 keV.
 17. A device for surfacetreatment of a substrate surface of a substrate, the device comprising:a process chamber for receiving the substrate; means for applying anamorphized layer via sputtering to the substrate surface for bonding atthe substrate surface of the substrate, the amorphous layer having athickness d>0 nm.
 18. The device according to claim 17, furthercomprising: means for removing oxides from the substrate surface duringthe sputtering, wherein the oxide removing means is configured to purifythe substrate surface.
 19. The device according to claim 17, furthercomprising: an ion chamber in which a gas and/or a gas mixture isionized to form particles for collision with the substrate surface toform the amorphous layer.